Adjumani | Office of the Officer in Charge of Traffic at Adjumani Central Police Station has held a meeting with boda-boda riders in the district.
The meeting was to address the increasing cases of road crashes and sensitise riders on road safety rules, regulations, and the interpretation of different road signs.
Traffic police officers, district leaders, and boda-boda representatives attended. The key message at the meeting was improving road safety and reducing preventable crashes involving motorcycle riders.
OC traffic ASP Muchiguzi Wilson emphasised that the gathering was prompted by the growing number of road crashes involving boda-boda riders in the district.
“….I’m seeing the accidents which are increasing here. We are getting accidents with boda boda because they don’t know how to ride motorcycles,” he said.
“Secondly, you don’t have permits. Whenever I meet a boda boda rider, I ask: Who has permitted you to go on the road? Now, I request everyone to obtain a permit.”
ASP Muchiguzi said boda riders in the district have developed a wrong-turning culture. “We normally get very many accidents near the hospital. Why?”
“You are using the wrong sides. So, I’m requesting the office of the boda boda chairman, together with my office, to get a lecture for boda boda; we teach them the road marks.”
District Police Commander of Adjumani, SP Masembe Herbert, emphasised that road safety is a shared responsibility for all road users regardless of their mode of transport.
“The meeting had a theme which all of us should embrace. Since it’s about safety, I would imagine that we said safety for all. Whether I’m a boda boda rider, whether I’m not a boda boda rider, we are all road users at any one point.”
“All of us walk on the road, drive on the road, none of us moves in the air. So, our actions must be in the best interest of every life because every life matters,” the DPC urges.
The Adjumani District Boda-Boda Chairman, Baru Richard, welcomed the initiative and encouraged fellow riders to apply the knowledge gained from the meeting and share it with others who were unable to attend.
“I want to appreciate the office of the OC traffic and his colleagues for organising this meeting, and the members for coming. We have been facing a lot of challenges, especially road crashes, traffic officers arresting our bikes when we don’t know why.”
“Now that we have been told why, I pray we go out there and start practising what we have got here and also let our colleagues whom we have left out know.”
The Resident District Commissioner of Adjumani, Toko Swaib, urged riders to protect their lives and the lives of other road users by avoiding reckless riding and observing traffic regulations.
The meeting concluded with a commitment from the traffic police and boda-boda leadership to continue conducting road safety awareness sessions, particularly on road signs, road markings, proper riding skills, and compliance with traffic regulations as part of the efforts to reduce road crashes in the district.
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